Thursday, July 14, 2016

Leading with Cultural Competence - Never Stop Learning

Often times during sessions on cultural competence people are
surprised to learn that their understanding of cultural dynamics or diversity
is not as advanced as they believed.
This does not mean that a person is doomed to remain at that knowledge
level forever and not able to grow their cultural competency skills. It is actually quite the opposite. When people are able to better understand
where they are on their journey towards cultural competence they are better
able to seek out new knowledge and experiences.
Today we offer for you five books that were recently recommended during June's Leading with Cultural Competence workshop.

‘Facilitating Multicultural Groups’ is a good reference tool when preparing for meetings and workshops. It gives tips on how to adapt materials and
prepare for situations that may arise in intercultural settings. According to Toby Spanier, Extension educator,
with this book you are getting two for one because of all of the facilitation
techniques and tools that are presented.

David Livermore is a thought leader on cultural intelligence
and global leadership. He is able to
take research and make it understandable and applicable for community
leaders. In 'Driven By Difference,' Livermore presents strategies and practices that “guide multicultural teams to
innovation” through the building of trust, creating a safe environment, and
engaging multiple perspectives. When
asked why this book is useful for leaders Toby Spanier stated that it helps us
see that “we shouldn’t view diversity as a problem to be solved, but rather as
a treasure trove, rich with innovative solutions waiting to be mined.”

As the author of more than ten books on diversity and
leadership it is not a surprise that Livermore has two books on our must read
list. In 'Leading with Cultural
Intelligence,' Livermore offers a four step model to help us manage across
cultures more effectively. Spanier
shared that this book brings alive the concept of cultural intelligence and
applies it with practical how-tos. It is
grounded in cultural intelligence theory and research helping community leaders
to understand the “whys” as they do their work.

Andy Molinsky present us with a critical new skill, global
dexterity. He defines this as the
ability to adapt our behavior to new cultural contexts while still being our
true authentic selves. He captures the
six dimensions that set behavior expectations within a cultural setting:
directness, enthusiasm, formality, assertiveness, self-promotion, and personal
disclosure. According to Spanier, “if
you can master these expectations you have cracked the cultural code.”

Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling
by Edgar Schein

Although this book is not specific to cultural competence it
discusses an important skill that we need in order to improve our understanding
of others. The practice of humble inquiry moves us beyond telling people what they need to know and into
discussions that help us learn about the individual and encourages building
relationships based on curiosity and interest in the other person. Catie Rasmussen, Extension educator, believes this book is important to community leaders because it shows how we benefit by three actions - telling less, listening more, and asking questions using humble inquiry.

Now that you have a few books to pick from, head over to your local library, bookstore, or find your favorite electronic reader and head out to enjoy the sunshine with a good book!